The Rules
by just jay
Summary: A list of 100 Rules and tips the boys subconsciously set for each other. Rule 9 "You're the first person ever in the history of the living to need surgery from a paper cut!" Logan said. "Why are you so excited about that?" my 100 themes challenge.
1. Don't Tell Me To Shut Up

Thought: Hi. Um, yeah, this is my one-shot thing, my 100 themes challenge. 100 one-shots, 100 themes, 100 rules and tips. I'll take requests(: Actually, I'd prefer some. I really want to like, write for YOU guys. All my other stories, I'm doing for me, but I know there's over 100 of you that are getting the email saying that I've posted a new story, and I want you to know that you know, I love you. I want to give you what you give me. So please send requests.

Since I'm considering these one-shots, I'm not sure if they will be linked as a story. Maybe I'll do spin off chapters of previous ones. I'll change point of views, I'll change relationships. You'll never know what's going to happen next.

I'm not starting with an introduction, because I think I'm cool and can do that.

this chapter is short and has hints of kogan.

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><p>kendall's point of view.<p>

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><p>governare uno<br>di mai dirmi di chiudere su

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><p>We were five.<p>

Everybody knows how four and five year olds are; we were practically babies, we were innocent, and stupid. Out of all of the animals in the world, human infants are born the most helpless. Yet, we're still considered the most intelligent creatures. To say my friends and I were intelligent would be an overstatement. Even Logan, who was supposedly a genius, was a friggin idiot. We were all idiots till we were at least, you know…actually, we're still idiots.

I've known Carlos, James and Logan so long that I couldn't even begin to imagine what life would be like without them. They were _always_ there. I knew I knew Logan first; our mothers were best friends all throughout elementary, middle, high school, everything. My mom once told me that Logan's mom only had Logan because she wanted the two of them to have kids the same age, to grow up with each other. Us being friends was inevitable; we were destined for it. Half the time I felt like our friendship was inherited, but the other half, I felt like it was destined.

Logan was a very black and white kind of guy. He'd always had bipolar pretty bad, and he just couldn't control how he felt. Depression came in bouts, and I hated seeing him like that. When we were young sometimes he just wouldn't talk to me, just ignore me because he didn't want to say anything that would hurt my feelings. We rarely argued, though. We were just, there for each other.

Logan and I lived with each other for a long time. Logan's dad had pretty much left, and my mom let her and Logan live with us. Logan was a newborn, I was shy of being a year old, and my dad was in Iraq. They were two lonely women with babies; having each other was a good thing. Logan and I grew up as brothers for the first three years of our lives, and even when they moved out, they just moved to the apartment on the first floor.

When his dad came back, things were calm and quiet for a while. But it came to an end and the screaming started, his mom, Joann, starting crying all the time. Logan just got much more quiet. It wasn't like him to be as quiet as he was, but, that eventually fell into be his personality. He was just quiet and shy.

There was one day I fell at the playground and twisted my knee; it hurt so bad, and I'll admit, my five year old little self cried. Carlos ran to get a teacher, and Logan knelt down beside me and said, told me it'd be okay. Four year old Logan said, "It's just a twist. It hurts now, but it'll end. So, suck it up." I laughed through my tears, and at that point, the teacher carried me to the nurse and the nurse gave me a knee brace; naturally, Logan was right. The pain ended, and I was a-ok with my little gimp for a few days.

Another time, Logan lost at the, what I called, 'speller's bee', misspelling the word 'sword'. He'd spelled it, "S-O-A-R-E-D," at first, like, 'the bird soared in the sky', but the teacher corrected it and Logan panicked a little, forgetting about that awkward silent 'w.' He was _so upset_. Logan doesn't get things wrong like that. He was reading at two; walking at like, six months, and he was a friggin genius. He was younger than everybody and smarter than everybody. That was how he had power in the kindergarten. (Of course, he didn't have power against the first and second grade bullies).

So, Logan went to the bathroom after losing the word as the speller's bee continued, and after a while of sitting, watching the damn spellers, I got worried. James and Carlos were still in the game, being ultra competitive and knowing that there's an O after the C in chocolate. Fuck chocolate, okay? Eventually I stood up told my teacher I was going to the bathroom, and crawled under the last bathroom stall to where Logan was on the floor, crying in a ball near the toilet.

"What'da doing, Logie?" I asked.

"Crying, Kendall."

"Why are you crying?"

"Cause I lost! Wouldn't you cry if you lost?"

"…no. I did lose, remember? You know what you're supposed to do? Suck it up. Like you tell me. You don't see me crying like a baby. Are you a baby?"

Logan's eyes welled with tears. "Aww! Don't bully me!" then mumbled, "kicking me when I'm down, jerk…"

I rolled my eyes. "You're bullying me by saying I'm a jerk," I said. "You friggin(1) jerk. Now suck it up."

"Shut up, Kendall! I'm supposed to know the answers! You said it, well _you_ know what, _you're_ supposed to know the answers!"

I shot daggers at him. "Never tell me to shut up!" I pointed a finger at him. He blinked. "I don't…" instead of arguing, though, I did what I should have done in this situation. I realized that Logan's pain was different than mine. It was always different than mine; in our roughest situations, it was always Logan's emotions, or my being physically hurt. So I said, "Logie, it's okay to lose sometimes. You learn from it. It's okay to be sad, but you don't wanna live your life being sad, do you?"

He sniffled and shook his head. "I always try not to be sad, but I just am."

"I know you're sad all the time, but you're not always sad when you're with me, and you got me forever."

Logan studied me for a moment, before smiling and giving me a hug.

"I love you, Kendall," he said, something I'd heard a million times before. Something that was _second nature_ to the both of us.

That night, Logan slept in my apartment and James and Carlos had came over for a few hours. Our imaginations ran high and my room became a pirate ship; I was Captain Kendall, Logan was my first hand man, James was the good looking guy that handled the fighting, and Carlos was the parrot.

"Ahoy there maties!" I shouted.

"Boist the anchor!" said James.

"Hoist,," corrected Logan.

"rauuught, rauughht," said Carlos, "Hoist, rauught, rauuuuught.!"

Kendall's bed was our ship, and we hoisted the anchor (blanket), and set sail on a mission to find treasure. "When we find this goldem treasure," said James, "We're gonna be rich and I'm gonna buy a llama."

"It's_ golden_ treasure, dummy," I said, "and what would you buy a llama for?"

"Cause they're so cool! All that hair!"

"It's fur," I said firmly.

We went back and forth for a while before he said, "Shut up! It's HAIR!"

I did the same thing, "Never tell me to shut up!" I screamed and he angrily gave up. I smiled, knowing then my friends would never tell me to shut up. It was just a saying my mom said when requested her to shut up. I seldom did that, though, and I learned that it was disrespectful. I said, "Never tell me or anyone else to shut up. It's not nice."

And, that was the end of that.

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><p>Note: Yes. So, what are you thinking? Like I said, I'll take requests, meaning, like, idea requests. I have the list of rules already, but i want to apply them to your ideas. lay them down. thanks for reading(:<p>

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><p>(1) friggin - I'm aware Kendall is five and five year olds don't normally say words like friggin. But, around where I live, five year olds say MUCH worse things. <p>


	2. Never Lie To Me

Thought: I wanted to try a classroom one. Leaveeeeeeeee requests!

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><p>no point of view.<p>

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><p>governare due<br>non mi mentono mai o nessuno altro

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><p>Logan tried to stay out of trouble, he really did. It was hard when your friends were James Diamond, Carlos Garcia and Kendall friggin Knight.<p>

Their third grade teacher was Mr. Stuart. He wore tan slacks and a tie every day, carefully tucking in his shirt. Gel greased up the hair that was combed over trying to hide the balding on the aging teacher. He was your typical dork teacher. He wasn't cool, or funny and his lessons plainly sucked. However, he was dangerously stupid.

Well, okay, it wasn't that he was stupid, more like he was clueless. He was completely oblivious to the class, especially the four most trouble-making students he'd ever encountered. There was one day that Kendall and James played charades with each other from across the room; Mr. Stuart didn't catch on for like, three _hours_.

Carlos's record of, "Guess what?" "What?" "Chicken butt." was at an ultimate high. He'd gotten about, seven in one day, and each time, Mr. Stuart proceeded to explain that the eggs don't actually fall out of the chicken's _butt_, it just appears that way. The eggs came out of cloaca's, which is where the male chicken penis is hidden, and where the female vagina is, and that's how the eggs appear to come out of their ass.

Kendall was continually a smartass. One day, Mr. Stuart made the comment that "a picture is worth a thousand words." That very day, the kids were assigned a 1000 word essay. Instead of writing, Kendall drew him a picture. Mr. Stuart and all his obliviousness thought it was rather clever and gave him an A+.

James was _always_ faking not knowing what was going on trying to delay the next lesson. He always had comments, and he always exaggeratingly made a point that _he_ wanted to answer the question, and then answered with something stupid like "orange" or "buttercups." He rarely paid attention and always looked at himself in a hand mirror. He would sometimes shout random words during the lessons, and play it off as if he didn't say them. Mr. Stuart was teaching multiplication, saying, "There's a trick to the nine's-" and was interrupted with a "CHOW MEIN!"

Logan even had his fair share of causing mischief. There was one day, he had been running late and when he entered the class after the bell and Mr. Stuart firmly looked at him and said, "You're late." In a panic, Logan responded with, "The wizard is never late. Nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to." ….he got away with it. There was one day the guys convinced him to turn his homework written in Spanish. …he got away with that, too.

As a whole, they were torture. They were constantly getting into things that they weren't supposed to touch; like the teacher's desk and supplies, and putting glue where they ought not put it. They sent notes around the class and once organized a chorus of "99 Bottles." Another time, they'd switched the dry erase markers with permanent ones. It took Mr. Stuart seven weeks to completely rid the permanent ink.

One day, they were messing around in the classroom after being forced to stay in for recess. It _wasn't_ their fault the fire alarms went off and the firetrucks showed up. …okay, maybe it was, but taking away recess was cruel. Mr. Stuart had to step out to use the restroom, and the boys had ended up knocking over half of the white board.

"HOW DO WE FIX THIS?" Logan shrieked, not being able to handle the pressure.

"_Relax_, Loges!" Kendall shouted at his friend. "We can just…look it's like cardboard back here. We can just…staple it…"

"WE CAN'T STAPLE IT YOU MORON!" said Logan, starting to hyperventilate.

"Logan!" James shouted. "Calm the heck down would ya! Use you friggin brain and think of something! _You're_ the genius!"

Logan's brain panicked and scanned for answers. Then, it hit him. He took the gum out of his mouth. "Quick! Gimme your gum and start chewing more!"

The boys obeyed, spitting their wads into Logan's hands and he slapped them against the fallen board. The guys started chewing, two, three pieces at a time, breaking them up, handing the genius pieces to stick all over the board.

Logan gagged at the thought of touching gum that had been in their mouths, but they were running out of time and the guys didn't know the precise placements of the wads that would make the whiteboard stay in place.

"Quick, help me put it in place," Logan said.

Kendall grabbed the board and James and Carlos followed in suit, putting it in place. Logan inspected, keeping his hands far from his face. "To the left a smidge," he mumbled, then helped them stick it tight, and Just as they were leaning against it to put pressure on it, Mr. Stuart walked in.

"…what's going on?" he questioned.

"…nothing," came the simultaneous supply of three of the four boys. Logan's sticky hands made him feel disgustingly sick to his stomach and he swore if he opened his mouth again, he'd throw up.

"Never lie to me, boys," he said, "never lie to me or anyone else. It's a disgusting habit."

Kendall laughed casually. "Us, lie? We're so _honest_.," he lied, glancing at Logan. "Dude…? Are you okay?"

Logan stopped leaning against the board and booked it for the bathroom, washing the disgusting stickiness off of his hands. He scrubbed for a good three minutes before his friends burst through the door. "Are you okay?"

"Don't. Ask. Me. That.," he said firmly through gritted teeth. "You just lied!"

"You lied, too, genius," said James.

"I'm aware!"

"It's okay, Logan," said Carlos, "Stuart has no idea what happened. He's an idiot, remember? He'll never even find out."

Logan rolled his eyes. "I'm not going down with this one, guys," he said, finally finishing washing his hands. "Do you remember how long I was grounded the last time Mr. Stuart called my dad? My dad's gonna flip!"

Kendall couldn't help but agree. "Yeah, and I _really_ hate when he hits you."

Logan's cheeks reddened and he stormed angrily passed his friends mumbling, "let's just get back."

And when they retuned, recess was over and class was to resume. The boys took their seats and Kendall, Carlos and James couldn't help but watch their angry friend. Logan, however kept looking at the board, noticing it was slowly moving forward. The gum at the top was giving away.

Mr. Stuart didn't notice and kept teaching, writing notes of history on the side of the board that wasn't slipping or being held by gum. Then, he turned, stepping to the right, right below the board, and all too soon, the board smashed down onto their teacher's head.

Logan's heart plummeted, knowing for _sure_ he was going to get it this time.

However, Mr. Stuart jumped up, with a big, doofy grin on his face.

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><p>Note: leave requests. read my new story. thank you. thank you for reading(:<p> 


	3. Think Positively

Thought: Slightly based on a true story. This has been in my head ever since gleechild mentioned it a few days ago. I hope you like it.

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><p>no point of view.<p>

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><p>governare tre<br>pensare certamente

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><p>Senior year.<p>

So many eventful things that are supposed to happen senior year; you know, the usual pep rallies and hockey games, football and soccer, the up-all-night nights, the parties, the girls, college applications, deciding what it is you're going to be doing for the rest of your lives, the graduation requirements, senior prom, _graduation_, post grad.

Every year, Jackson High School holds a Senior Picnic for all the senior students at their school. They travel to this remote location and just hang out and do fun activities. Our favorite foursome carpooled to the school, and loaded onto their crammed bus. Four busses, all were completely back. All the students were jamming three to a seat.

Kendall was always lucky, so naturally, he sat with the two smallest people in their whole class; Logan Mitchell and a girl named Lilly. James and Carlos were in the seat beside them, crammed with the quarterback, Corey. Kendall and James were touching, being so _in to _the bus aisle. Logan was smushed into the window, and Carlos's leg was bouncing up and down, causing James to shake, which caused Kendall to shake, which caused Lilly to shake, which caused Logan to become annoyed.

It was a two hour bus ride.

They were the first school to arrive, but by the time they got there, everyone was hot, and cranky. It was a trip up the driveway to the parking lot, and they just passed fields. Carlos made a sarcastic comment, "Look at all the fun things we can do in a field."

Kendall said, "The same things we could do at school in the turf field across the school. We could have had this thing in my 40 acre backyard and not have to travel two damn hours!"

Lilly kept complaining that she had to pee, which caused Logan to have to pee. "_Maybe_ you shouldn't have drank all that coffee," Kendall pointed out to the fellow senior.

"If I didn't, I'd be a sleep_ on you_ right now."

Kendall arched a brow. "I'd be okay with that."

The teacher made them stay seated till they got wristbands to identify which school they're from. This annoyed the seniors, but once they were off the bus, they booked it up the hill to the pavilion, noting the obstacle course, rock climbing wall, soccer field, basketball courts, volleyball net, and mechanical bull on their way up. The boys were the first in the bathroom, and the first out. Kendall, James and Carlos went for the donuts on the tables and Logan studied the chart of things to do.

"They have horseback riding and canoe racing," he said.

"Let's eat first," Carlos said, mouthful of donut.

"All the other schools are gonna get here, and we'll have to-"

"Hey," Kendall said. "It's nine. We have _seven_ hours!" They found a table on the deck overlooking the two large pools. Some of their classmates were already jumping in. James had had an ear infection due to water in the ear recently, and couldn't go in a swimming pool for another week or so. All four boys opted out of that.

After they ate, Carlos wanted to see the horses, not ride them, just _see_ them, so they searched and searched for the horses. Logan found the trail and they walked down it, James getting pissed after stepping on horse shit.

"They're sooo cute!" Carlos exclaimed joyfully upon seeing the twelve or so horses in the gates. Eight of them had riders on them, and were about ready to start the trail walk. "Look at the white one!"

"I've never _seen_ Western horses," Logan commented. "English ones, yeah. They are pretty great."

So, the boys followed the horses once they left the gates down the trail, but when the horses went straight, they went left, into a field where a bunch of kids were playing Frisbee, football, and soccer.

They joined in the soccer game for a bit, happily helping their school cream the other one. Then, they went in canoes; James and Carlos on one, Logan and Kendall in the other. Logan and Kendall were able to go much faster than Carlos and James because they had about thirty less pounds than the other two. They played bumper-boats for a while, then Carlos was hungry again so they got out of the boats and went to get some lunch and free ice-cream.

After their stomachs settled, they rode the mechanical bull for a little while, which was fun but made them dizzy. They canoe-raced, they danced and sang in front of a huge crowd of pre-graduates just for funsies, then they completed the obstacle course and climbed the rock wall. Carlos beat them to the top, Kendall not far behind, James right behind him, and Logan had fell twice and was still making his way up to the top.

Then, they went in kayaks and kept ramming into the row boats; one of them was Lilly's, and they kept flirting with all the other girls that they saw on the lake. It was a fun time, and they were out there for like, two or three hours.

Then, they got off the lake and Kendall, James and Carlos wanted to trek up this trail that they found. Logan wanted to get a drink, so, they split up for the time being and opted to meet up at their table in about twenty minutes.

It was _so hot_ and Logan could feel all the body water draining out of his body. He didn't feel good; dehydration was kicking in. He went to the soda fountain and got himself some water. He filled his cup up three times and it still wasn't enough. He felt dizzy and lightheaded. He looked at the clock. Their group was leaving at four, to be back at the school by six, and it was fifteen minutes passed three.

He and the guys met back up at the table around 3:30. They came back smelling absolutely dreadful and Logan couldn't help but gag. "_What_ happened?"

"…we met a skunk," was the simple response.

"Fuck, you guys _smell_," he said. "I think I'm gonna throw up."

"We should drink tomato juice, right?" Carlos asked.

"…no. You should _bathe_ in tomato juice," Logan said, plugging his nose, trying to block out their retched smell. But now, he was breathing it in, _tasting _it, making his nausea much worse. "We should tell a teacher."

Normally opposed to this request, Kendall nodded. "Yeah, we probably should. Ms. Lyons!" he shouted, upon seeing their chaperone. The four advanced towards her, and the three unanimously said, "We got sprayed by a skunk!"

The teacher laughed, her eyes watering. "I can smell. How'd you manage to find a skunk?"

"It sort of found us," James pointed out.

"You okay, Logan?" she asked.

"_I_ didn't get sprayed," Logan said.

"Did you bring bathing suits to go in the pool with?" she asked.

"…no. James's got swimmer's ear, remember? But we did bring clothes, but they're wet cause we were in the kayaks."

"Well…here's the thing. Ms. Henson went to the hospital with Corey who hurt his leg playing football. We have to wait for her to be back, which won't be for another half an hour or so. Put your wet clothes on; I'll go see if they have tomato juice that we can dump on you."

The boys put their wet clothes on and waited for her to return. They sat in a field drenched in sticky red tomato juice, letting it try to kill the smell. It didn't, of course, because they couldn't _bask_ in it, but it did tone down the smell. If they rode with the windows open, nobody would even notice that they stunk.

The staff members hosed them down and they put their dry clothes on, and waited with the rest of their class for Ms. Henson to return. It'd been 45 minutes, and still nothing; everyone was becoming annoyed and Logan was becoming more dizzy. Heat exhausted had taken over him, and he was not feeling well at all.

Mrs. Lyons said it wasn't going to be another hour for Ms. Henson to return, and the tired and hot class was very annoyed. Lilly said that if Corey wasn't such a fucking douche bag show off then none of them would be stuck two hours from home, waiting for their teacher who wouldn't have a ride home if they left. Logan kept his head in his hands, feeling really cold, but being really hot.

"…what's the matter?" Kendall asked him.

"I…just don't feel good."

"What happened? You were fine all day," said James.

"I don't know," Logan said honestly.

Kendall sighed and rubbed at his hair, his hand red with tomato juice excess. "What's taking so long at the hospital?"

"Ms. Henson probably has to wait for Corey's mom to get there before she can come back," Logan replied.

"Well, this is getting ridiculous."

"Why would Ms. Lyons tell us it was going to be a half an hour, when it's been an hour _already_!" James complained.

"She didn't _know_," Logan stated. "At this point she knows as much as we do. Just relax. Shit happens, alright?"

There was an awkward moment of silence. Kendall's eyes shifted. "I think we should tell Ms. Lyons you're sick. What if it's like, food poisoning or something?"

"…if it were food poisoning, and _2000_ kids were eating it, don't you think someone else would be sick, too?"

Kendall's eyes shifted again, and he stood up. "I'm telling her." He advanced towards the teacher and was out of their earshot. Carlos started building a big, giant hill out of grass that he was plucking, James had pulled out his hand mirror and lucky comb, and Logan still sat, head in hands, knees up to chest.

Kendall and Mrs. Lyons came over. She knelt down and put her hand on his knee. "Logan?" His head lifted up. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just…am really dizzy and nauseas."

"Okay, well, come stay over by me in under the shade, okay? I'll get you a drink. It shouldn't be much longer, guys. We called Corey's mom a little over two hours ago."

Kendall sighed, "We're just ready to go home already."

"Yeah, Kendall's mom made us frozen yogurt!" Carlos peeped.

"I know guys, I trust me, I want to go home too."

Logan stood up and followed Ms. Lyons to the shaded area and went to get him a drink. James and Carlos weren't sure if they should follow, but Kendall knew that they probably shouldn't. Not because he didn't want to, but because their very presence probably made Logan sick to his stomach by their friggin smell.

"I feel bad," James said, watching Logan lean against the tree from a distance. "I know I'm a show off, but seriously, Corey needs to tone it down. We should be halfway home by now. And I fucking smell!"

"…you're still pretty, though," Carlos commented.

Kendall nodded in agreement, hoping to get James to shut the fuck up. There are some things you just can't change. Like Logan said, shit just happens.

Carlos yawned loudly, and sunburned students were still complaining; it was about another half an hour before Ms. Lyons told everyone to load up on their assigned buses. Logan sat with the aforementioned teacher in the first seat, slowly drinking ginger ale with a bottle of water leaning up against him. Kendall, James, and Carlos crammed themselves into the seat behind him. Lilly, who sat at their left with one of her friends, said, "Jesus Christ, you guys reek! What'd you do!"

"We got sprayed by a skunk," Carlos said, sounding rather excited by it.

"And then Ms. Lyons dumped tomato juice on us," James said.

"…it toned the smell down," Kendall said defensively.

They sat in the buses for five minutes till Ms. Henson arrived and jumped on their bus. They finally started the journey home.

Logan tried to sleep, and Kendall, Carlos, and James joked and laughed, played the alphabet game, twice, Kendall won, twice, and they even started a small sing along. Ms. Lyons took her sweatshirt and wrapped it around Logan, and she asked him if he was okay and he nodded.

After the two hour trip to the school, making it back at eight o'clock, the boys made their way to Kendall's car. They piled in, James and Carlos in the back, and headed towards Kendall's house, where they were going to highly enjoy their frozen yogurt….except Mama Knight made the three stinky boys stay outside. She handed them frozen yogurt on her way to the grocery store to buy more tomato juice. No way were they going in her house.!

Logan slept off his heat exhaustion on the couch as James, Carlos, and an annoyed Kendall sat in a kitty pool of tomato juice in the backyard.

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><p>note:...yeah, that was really bad. and what i have for doll so far right now is really bad. so. yeah. i'm working on it. thanks for reading(:<p> 


	4. Be Courageous & Brave

Thought: This idear was submitted by DaniiLuvsBTR.

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><p>logan's point of view.<p>

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><p>governare quattro<br>essere coraggioso e coraggioso

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><p>Kendall said it would be a good idea. Naturally, James and Carlos were all for it, however, I was more apprehensive about it. I told them we shouldn't. I told them it'd be a bad idea. However, me saying 'I told you so' doesn't change what happened. It does, however, make me feel better.<p>

Kendall had had an issue with white walls since he was rushed to the emergency room for that appendectomy a few months prior. He was reminded every morning when he woke up and saw white walls of all the pain he'd went through. He couldn't stand it. So he effervescently suggested, "Let's paint my wall!"

"…Idunno, Kendall," I said, my voice soft, very wary of his suggestion.

"I think it's a GREAT idea," James said, quite enthusiastically. "We've got, like, a shit ton of paint in my basement from when my mom tried to take that nude pa…we just have a lot of paint."

Carlos laughed. "Your mom," he rolled his eyes.

James punched him.

I sighed. "I think your mom will get mad," I said to Kendall.

"Who cares? She gets mad at everything I do."

"Because they're BAD ideas! Bad ideas cause for angry parents, angry parents cause for unhappy children, and that's us! Do you want to be unhappy?"

"Happiness doesn't only come in the form of pleasing your parents, Logie. Sometimes, you gotta do things for you. This is something I gotta do for me. Can't you understand that?"

I, of course, could understand that. I psychoanalyzed it within two seconds and it did make sense. Unsurprisingly, I said, "I gotta get new friends," and we proceeded to go next door to James's house and each carry two buckets of paints over to Kendall's room. He laid a tarp over his carpet, we helped him remove photos and move the bed to the other side of room. He then passed out paintbrushes.

He dipped his in blue. Carlos went for green, James purposely went for yellow, knowing red was my favorite. I dipped it in, but Kendall was the first to splatter the paint across the plain white wall. I held mine in my hands, hesitating as everyone else was splashing paint, but then, I joined in, too. This, of course, was all predictable. Me being wary, Kendall leading the whole thing, James and Carlos following along in whatever he said.

I splashed the red paint against the yellow, blue and green. Suddenly, though, Carlos was covered in green paint.

"Shit, dude!" I said, "That's gonna stain!"

"…so?"

"Stains are equivalent of the incentive, Carlos!"

"What?"

"I mean, when Mama Knight sees you covered in green paint, it gives her incentive to think that we were up to something. Incentive as in, all the more reasoning." I was panicking a little.

"So, how do we get rid of the stains?" Kendall asked, clearly not as affected by it as I was.

"Well…it's drying out quick. We need hot water, rubbing alcohol and a toothbrush. Preferably one that's not mine."

"Relax, Loges," Kendall said, "We've got spare toothbrushes in the closet. Yours is safe."

Carlos changed into some of Kendall's clothes; he was literally swimming in them, and his pants kept falling down. I almost offered him some of mine, but then remembered the reason he needed someone else's clothes in the first place. I'd been living at Kendall's for a few months; my mom was in rehab and my dad was homeless. But the kid wasn't getting in any of my clothes, no way, Jose.

I wanted to work straight away on Carlos's clothes before the stains literally set, but he, regrettably, was in charge of the hot water. He was out of the room for about three minutes before we heard him screaming bloody murder. I dropped the rubbing alcohol and ran as fast as I could to the kitchen.

Carlos was on the floor, next to a big puddle of scalding water, so hot that I could still see steam, and extremely red hands. He, inadvertently, was crying. "Logan…I…hurt my….mys…myself!" he sobbed.

"Let me see," I said, knowing that it was just first degree, if that, nothing too serious. Mama Knight knew long ago to manage the temperature of the water of the house. It never got hotter than 160 degrees Fahrenheit, but that didn't mean he wasn't in pain.

"No!" he shouted, clutching his hands to his stomach pathetically.

"Come on, Carlos."

"NO!"

"How can I help you if you won't let me see?"

"It. H-hurts!"

"What does Kendall always say? Huh? Be courageous, and brave. Take things head on. It happened already, and the only way for me to help the pain go away is if you show me. The only way for you to show me is if you're brave enough to. Are you? Are you brave, or are you a baby? Do you want James and Kendall to think you're a baby? Because I'll call them in here right now-"

"NO!" Carlos shouted, sick of being the baby of the group. He held out his shaking hands, and I inspected them. As I suspected, small, first degree burns. Nothing major, but he was still hurting. I took two rags and dampened them with cool water; and wrapped them around his little red hands. "It'll stop hurting real badly soon. Once you let it slip your mind, it won't hurt so bad anymore."

I, not surprisingly, was right. I gave Carlos a popsicle and he sat at the table and licked, sticky juice dripping onto the rags over his hands. He was so distracted by the popsicle that he didn't even notice when they fell to the table, leaving his hands exposed.

I cleaned up the water, and worked the stains right out of Carlos's clothes, them being ready just in time, because Mama Knight had come home. I couldn't help but act like something was up…after all, something was up. I was quite panicky when she said, "Is everything okay?" and I was jumpy and fidgety. It was natural.

"Tone it down," Kendall said quietly, through gritted teeth, trying to make sure she didn't notice him saying it.

"Logan?" she said. "Can you help me bring in the groceries?"

"I' CAN'T! Carlos got popsicle juice on the table because I gave him a popsicle because he burned his hands because he was getting hot water so I could get the stains out o his clothes that he got there from painting because Kendall said it would be a good idea if we painted one of his walls and so we did! James and Carlos were all for it and I was like we shouldn't, but like EVERY OTHER freaking time, I went along with it anyway! Now if we put the groceries on the table, the bags will stick and then it'll get STUCK!" I said quickly.

Kendall, James and Carlos simultaneously face-palmed.

My chest heaved with relief, then guilt consumed me. I always got us into trouble. Damn it.

* * *

><p>Note: lol. I figure Logan wouldn't be able to keep it a secret. He'd just blurt it out when they weren't even close to getting caught. haha. thanks for reading(: <p>


	5. Have No Regrets

Thought: This hit me last night. I dunno.

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><p>no point of view.<p>

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><p>governare cinque<br>non avere dispiaceri

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><p>Mrs. Garcia gave Carlos and Logan but <em>one<em> job that day - wash Sparky. He was, "smelling up her whole house!" and he needed to be washed. Sparky was a _big_ dog. He was quite huge, he was a 100 pound Doberman, who did really well with kids.

Boy, did that dog _love _Carlos. Carlos loved him, too. They were like brothers, Sparky slept in Carlos's bed, he ate Carlos's food, he licked his face, he got excited when his friends came over. He had such a great personality, he was well trained, intelligent, and an all around good pet and loyal companion to Carlos.

"We have to wash him outside," 12 year old Carlos said, "Because he'll get water all over mom's house and I don't think Logie want's to clean that up."

Logan looked at his friend grumpily, although he expected that. "Yeah, yeah. Well, we don't wanna fill the pool up with hose water, it'll be too cold," he said.

"The pool?" Carlos questioned.

"Yeah…the blow up pool your mom has in the shed to wash the dog."

"…?"

"The yellow and blue one?" Logan pushed.

"I have no clue what you're talking about, but, whatever, hose water, too cold, got it. I'll start filling up buckets with warm water from the house. You set the pool up."

"…fine."

Logan used the bicycle tire pump to blow up the blow up pool in Carlos's shed and Carlos started filling up beach buckets and cooking pots with water he felt appropriately warm to bathe his dog. He carried them out one by one and when the final pot was brought out, he and Logan poured it all in. It didn't even come remotely close to filling the pool halfway.

"What the hell, this is gonna take forever!"

Logan rolled his eyes. "Just go fill all that up with scalding hot water…actually, _I'll_ do that…you just wait here."

"You're gonna burn him!"

"Just trust me." Logan went inside and filled the three buckets up with scalding water; he poured them into the pool outside.

Carlos, again, objected, "It still isn't enough and it's going to be too hot."

Logan seemingly ignored him and went over to the hose, unraveling it just enough, turning it on and placing it into the pool. "The hotter that _little_ bit of water is, the more _cold_ water you'll need to even it out. We have to add cold water to make it warm. The more cold we have to add, the more water we'll have _in_ the pool. Follow me?"

Carlos nodded, finally getting it now that Logan had explained it. "Oh! You're so smart. Let me get the soap!" he said, racing inside to get the doggy soap and shampoo. He poured some into the pool and bubbles formed instantly .

"More. More. More. More. More. More," Logan encouraged Carlos's pouring, till there was enough bubbles to wash the slightly larger than average Doberman. "Okay. I'm going to get towels. You get Sparky."

"Roger," Carlos said, accepting the orders his older friend bestowed upon him, going off to fetch his pet.

Just as the boys were meeting again outside, Kendall arrived via bike, placing it carelessly on the front lawn, and made his way through the Garcia house in search of his friends, finding them in the backyard. Logan was _soaking_, and Carlos was damp, the dog covered in soap, being held down by Carlos as Logan tried to scrub the crap out of him.

Kendall started laughing. "I was just coming to see when you were coming home, Loges. Looks like it'll be a while, still…"

"Shut up and help," growled Logan, frustrated by being soaked, frustrated that Sparky was still trying to break free of Carlos's grip. Kendall placed his hands on the dog, who instantly stayed still, looking at Kendall, cocking his head to the side.

They finished washing the dog with ease, Kendall only getting a little wet. When they got Sparky out of the pool, he started acting funny, like something was bothering him. "We're gonna go _you_ a towel, Logie," Carlos said, "and Sparky here a treat. Maybe that's why he's antsy. Try to dry him off, but be careful! He's in a mood!" Carlos warned and proceeded to let Kendall lead him into the house.

They were inside for a mere two minutes before they heard Sparky's loud barks and Logan's horrific screaming. They raced outside, forgetting about what they even went in for, to find Logan outside, on the ground, alone. He was crying, tears mixed with blood and dirt, but he shook his head at his friends. "The dog! Get Sparky!" He wasn't loud enough. He'd been bitten in the face. He figured he could take care of his injuries better than his friends could, and losing Sparky would devastate Carlos to an extent where literally nobody wanted.

"Logan…." Carlos felt like throwing up. Sparky was such a good dog! He'd never hurt anybody, something must have _really_ been bothering him because Logan looked dreadful…blood was dripping down his neck and onto his clothes. Carlos was so confused, Logan was _bleeding_, he was hurt, and _his_ beloved animal was the reason. This just wasn't making any sense.

"Go find him," Logan encouraged, "I'll be okay. Where's the towel?"

"I didn't get one!"

"I'll get it," Logan said, standing up, "Seriously, go find the damn dog!"

"He'll come back! He always comes back! Logan, you're bleeding!" Carlos screamed.

"Carlos," Kendall said, taking action. Leadership isn't position. It's action. "Go look for Sparky, okay? I'll take Logan inside and clean him up."

"I can clean myself up, but he stepped on something!"

"Logan ,you're losing a lot of blood…" Kendall said softly, scared for his friend. Logan felt it, then, the dizziness and lightheadedness that comes with blood loss. "You need stitches…"

Logan paled, and Kendall became even more worried. But this time, he didn't say anything. He stayed quiet, he let Kendall do the leading. It was out of his hands now. He tried…he just wanted to find that damn dog, but instead, he ended up in the back of an ambulance, with the news saying that a 'rabid beast of an animal mauled an innocent boy and is on the lose…' Logan _hated_ that.

Logan did need stitches; the dog had gotten him pretty good, and he had thirteen stitches running along his cheek that would eventually just be a scar. "When it's healed, rub some Neosporin on it. It'll help reduce the scar's visibility. It won't be too bad," the doctor advised.

Still, Logan had to stay at the hospital for a few days. He needed blood tests, which meant they had to draw blood from him, blood that he couldn't really spare. They wanted to keep him there till at least a portion of the blood he lost was back in his body.

Carlos and Kendall sat at the hospital waiting for word on Logan; and it hurt their hearts to think that the precious, lovable pet was the reason they were there. When they were allowed to see Logan, he was panicky. They didn't know what to think, or how to make sense of what he was trying to say.

"He'd stepped on something! On the ground!" Logan said, quickly.

"Slow down, bro, take it easy," Kendall said, a hand with dirty fingernails resting on a shoulder, "What are you saying?"

"Sparky. Stepped. On. Something. Upon. Exiting. The. Pool," Logan said as slowly as he could, hoping his dumbass friends would follow.

"What'd he step on?"

"Idunno!" Little fingers spread apart as Logan's arms flailed quickly. "It was like…a thorn, or something. It was stuck in his paw. I went to go get it, but he didn't exactly allow me to…" Logan looked at Carlos, "he bit me and took off. I tried to grab his collar, Carlos, I swear! I didn't mean for him to get lose, I really didn't! I wanted you to go look for him," Logan was almost crying, but there was something seemingly off about him. Kendall figured it was the drugs periodically being injected into him. "I'm _so sorry_…"

The door burst open, and the three boys jumped, turning to see James. "One day!" he screamed, "I'm gone for one day! Not even a whole day! Just a few hours and this! What the hell happened!"

"It was an accident!" Logan shouted. "I didn't _mean_ for this to happen!"

"What the hell are you talking about? You did this to yourself?"

"You're not mad that-"

Then, Mrs. Garcia appeared in the doorway, too; James stepped forward to give her more room, and the two stood there, hands on hips, waiting for answers. "_What_ happened!" Mrs. Garcia questioned.

"I didn't mean to do this!" Logan screamed.

"Logan, chill out, okay?" Kendall asked calmly.

"I didn't mean to lose Sparky…Carlos, I really didn't!"

"You lost Sparky?" Mrs. Garcia asked.

Logan couldn't help it, he started crying. He _hated_ disappointing others, and he knew that he'd definitely disappointed everyone in that room right then. He didn't know how he could forgive himself for this one. He was, in his mind, a friggin idiot. "I'm sorry! I tried to get him, I really tried!"

"Loges," Kendall said, his voice low and firm. "I'm not going to warn you again…"

Logan took a deep breath. "He ran away," he said as calmly as possible.

Carlos still looked crushed, and Logan really felt bad. He wished he could go back to a few hours ago, before they even started giving the dog a bath. Then, they could have tied him to a tree or something. Anything was better than this. This was the _last_ situation they wanted, well, actually, they'd really like to find Sparky _alive._

Mrs. Garcia took in a deep breath. "Honey, that's not what I'm concerned about at the moment. How'd you end up in the hospital?"

"Yeah Logan! Ya friggin idiot!" James said, a hand in the air, "Why are you here!"

Mrs. Garcia peered at him with a small smile, "Keep anger subtle, James," she instructed. "Show concern."

"Sparky stepped on something sharp after Logan let him out of the pool," Carlos said, speaking up, finally. He didn't know how he wasn't crying. He couldn't help but feel angry at Logan that he'd let Sparky run. He couldn't help but feel angry at Kendall for not telling him to find the dog faster. He couldn't help but feel angry at himself for caring about Logan more than Sparky, and now, knowing Logan was okay, and not knowing where Sparky was, he'd regretted his decision. He should have taken off, he should have known Kendall would have this under control.

And now he didn't know where his dog was.

"He didn't let Logan get it, instead he bit him and ran off. Logan didn't stop him."

He sounded so hostile; he made it sound like it was Logan's fault, or that he didn't catch Sparky purposefully. Kendall watched the Latino carefully, concerned about what was going to happen. Logan was living with him, so he knew how he operated, in and out. Carlos, although Kendall knew him very well, could still be a mystery.

"I'm sorry!" Logan begged, looking with big eyes at Carlos. "Carlos, I didn't mean for this to happen, you gotta believe me!"

Carlos looked down, stubborn and upset. He couldn't help but pan the blame on Logan; despite still feeling sorry and concerned for him. Where was Sparky? "It's not your fault," he grumbled, but he clearly didn't believe it.

Carlos, Kendall and James spent the next few days searching for t he dog, making posters and planting them all over town, letting store owners and workers know that he was missing. The entire police force knew, with Carlos's father being apart of their team. Everybody had their eyes open for Sparky.

The day Logan got out of the hospital, Mrs. Knight really didn't want him leaving anywhere, but he insisted on helping find Sparky. Kendall kept him close and made him drink often, despite Logan's refusal.

They'd split up, Kendall and Logan going south, James and Carlos north, and were going to meet in the west in about thirty minutes. "Carlos is still mad at me," Logan said, "He thinks it's my fault. I really tried to stop him…I couldn't…he's bigger than I am…"

Kendall nodded, knowing this was true. "I'll talk to him."

So, when they met back up, Kendall said, "Carlos, you don't really think that Logan let Sparky go on purpose, do you? He loves Sparky, we all do. The dog just panicked after stepping on the thorn. He attacked Logan and took off. He's twenty pounds more than Logan! Logan's your best friend, you love him. You're gonna lose him if you keep being so stubborn. Have no regrets. You wanna lose two friends?"

Carlos shook his head slowly. "No. Logan, I'm sorry…I'm just…worried. It's been four days now…"

"Maybe he went home?" James asked, hopefully.

"W can try," Carlos said, sighing, but when he got home, his dad was home….but it was too early, and that made him excited. Maybe he'd found Sparky.! "Dad!" he ran into the house. "Did you find him?"

Mr. Garcia nodded, however, he was not smiling. "He'd gotten into a fight with a sick wolf," he said sadly, "The wolf had AIDS, Carlos. Sparky contracted it. He had to be put down…."

Carlos's heart panged. The last reminder had of his beloved Sparky now, was that scar on Logan's face. He hoped mauling Logan wasn't the last thing Sparky did before getting into a fight with the wolf. He hoped Sparky went out happily, or at least did something great with his life.

"Carlos…" Logan said cautiously. "…are you okay?"

Carlos shook his head, but smiled, despite crying. "I love you, Logan…it wasn't your fault."

However, Logan still felt guilty, and Carlos was still crying. So, he did the only thing he could think of, what Kendall did for him whenever he was upset. He wrapped his arms around his friend and held him tight, telling him it was okay. Telling him to cherish the time they previously had instead of thinking about the time they'll never have.

To have no regrets.

* * *

><p>Note: Awh. So, yeah. I remember Carlos's little face when was like, "Sparky): " in Big Time Audition. -shrugs-. thanks for reading!(:<p> 


	6. Don't Pee in the Shower

Thought: I wanna talk about me a little bit. I was in wal-mart with some friends the other day and I was walking around singing Aretha. For the past…three or so years I've decided that I honestly do not give a _fuck_ what anyone else thinks about me. If I feel like singing Aretha, goddamn it, I'm gonna sing Aretha. My friends were embarrassed to be seen with me. At least _I'm_ cute. Ahem.

So, I've decided to be funny today. So, with that, here we go. OH. I've realized that my original Italian translator failed me. 'Rule' is not Governare. I should have known, I should have asked my grandma sooner. I might go back and change them all, but starting now, I'm fixing it.

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><p>james's pov<p>

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><p>la regola sei<br>non pisciare nella doccia

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><p>Living in a house with five other people is not easy. Sure, we had space, and our own time, but still, the one bathroom thing wasn't sitting well with me anymore.<p>

I grew up alone. I grew up with no siblings, just my parents, in a large house. I had my own bathroom, and I had 5 other bathrooms available throughout the entire house. The bathroom was my favorite place in the house because it was the one place where I was alone, and in private, and getting clean, and beautifying. It was the one place where I could look in the mirror one minute, and with the simple spray of my Cuda so conveniently RIGHT THERE be more beautiful.

I found the more Cuda I used, the more beautiful I was. Just saying.

To say the transition was difficult would be an understatement. Sure, I still used a lot of Cuda. That would never change. But the constant people banging on the door while I was having my me time in the bathroom was so aggravating. Katie had to brush her teeth, Kendall had to pee, Carlos ate _too_ many chili dogs, Logan was gonna puke, and Mama Knight _needed _her makeup bag.

Like, Goddamn, these people were so _needy_. "Just a minute," I'd say, but they'd still knock on the door. I'm like. Freeze, okay. This is my time. I don't bother any of them when they're in their zones, and I'd appreciate it if they didn't bother me in my zone.

Carlos had video games; that was _his_ thing. I was the only one who enjoyed playing with him, just because I wasn't nearly as much of a sore loser as Kendall, and Logan found it was a waste of so much free time, so he'd only play once in a rare moon.

Logan had books; that was his thing. None of us enjoyed reading or studying like he did. He was like a friggin sponge, like he liked learning and stuff. He liked knowing things, and we liked having him around because he knew everything that we didn't, and that was _a lot_.

Kendall had pranks. Like, he was so good at them, and he enjoyed it. He'd get us all the time, you know? He won the crown _every_ year because he was the King. It was his niche, and we could never get him back. Logan's always backfired, Carlos was easily outwitted, and I, being the closest to ever beat Kendall, was always a step behind, somehow.

Then, me. James. I have the looks. I'm the face. I'm beautiful, more beautiful than any of my friends. I'm too ridiculously good looking to even compare to them in this particular field, yet, they always barged in. I don't just _wake up_ being as beautiful as I am when I take the time to do my hair right. My lucky comb never fails me. Neither does my Cuda. I just need _time_ to prepare and fix. They just don't understand.

So, there I was, locked in the bathroom, trying to make my hair perfect, applying Cuda's and gels alike; getting maximum volume, and strength. I ended up with a _bit_ too much volume, and had to rinse, lather, repeat and start all over again. I had just finished blow drying where there was a knock on the door.

"James?" it was Carlos. "I have to pee."

"Just a minute," I said. As usual, I took longer than a minute.

I could hear voices outside of the door, and it was slightly distracting. I tried my hardest not to lose concentration as I applied my Cuda frizz preventer.

"Who's in the bathroom.?"

"James is. I'm peeing before you."

"I'm gonna pee my pants!"

"But I was waiting first!"

"_Please_ Carlos! It's an emergency!"

Another knock on the door. "James? Please let me in. It'll only be a minute…" Kendall.

When I couldn't take anymore of the _Jeopardy_ knocking, I opened the door, both of them pushing past me. Kendall beat Carlos to the toilet, and Carlos looked at him devastatingly. I, however, was not amused.

Carlos then decided it was okay to pee into the tub.

Kendall was laughing, and I wanted _so badly_ to push him in. Instead, I waited for them to finish, except, Logan joined the party before that even happened.

"…can I ask just _what _in the world is going on in here?" he asked.

"Well, James was taking too long," said Carlos, pulling up his pants. Kendall was still at it. "And Kendall and I had to pee _real_ bad. So we did."

"…did you just _pee in the tub_?" Logan asked, incredulously.

Carlos nodded with a cheerful, "Mhm." and Kendall put his pants back on, flushing the toilet.

Logan, however, glared. "Do not pee in the shower!" he screeched. "That's so gross! We _shower in there!_"

"So? The water washes it away. It's like a toilet."

"No! It's not! Not in any way shape or form is a tub like a toilet. We stand _in_ it, Carlos!"

Carlos rolled his eyes, and flipped the shower on, rinsing his pee down the drain. "See? All gone. I pee in the shower every time I take one."

Logan looked nauseas. "I stand in that shower too! That's _disgusting_, Carlos! It's a disgusting thing, to pee in the shower!"

"If you're so bent, then clean it," Carlos said.

Ooh. I looked to Logan, who was clearly _fuming_. I'd changed my mind, and found much amusement in this after all. Logan was little and sweet, but he was a stubborn prick if he needed to be, and he was extremely bossy. Kendall was the leader, but Logan had him wrapped around his finger.

"No," Logan said firmly. "_You_ clean it. You're going to sit in this bathroom and scrub that tub clean, or else I'm _never_ making you chocolate pie again."

"But you promised you'd make it tonight!"

"Maybe I will, if the tub reaches my standards."

I couldn't hold back my laughter anymore, and Kendall couldn't either. Logan was clearly too pissed off to talk; he had this thing with germs and other people's body fluids. Go figure.

Carlos looked heartbroken. He seemed to have _really_ regretted peeing in the tub the entire time we were in the bathroom. Kendall and Logan had long gone, leaving just the two of us, me, facing the mirror, and Carlos, halfway in the tub with Clorox and gloves, mumbling, "I hate my life. Stupid Logan. I hate my life. Stupid Logan," over and over.

I did my best to block him out and focus on myself. It wasn't too hard, considering how good looking I am.

After my hair was _perfect_, and my skin was great, Carlos had cracked his back upon finishing cleaning the tub. "Do you think it'll pass Loge's standards?"

My eyes skimmed the tub quickly and I said with a shrug, "I dunno. His standards are different every day."

Carlos sighed. "I just had to pee real bad, and if I don't get pie because you didn't let me in sooner, I swear to God Himself, James, I'll murder you."

I laughed. "It'll be okay. You know Logie. He has a thing for making pie."

"But I want _chocolate pie!_ What if he makes _peach _or _cranberry_? Ugh. I might puke."

"Cranberry?"

"He could make a pie flavor so ridiculous that I'll hate pie forever!"

I rolled my eyes. "LOGAN!"

"Don't call him in here yet! I'm _not ready for this!_"

Logan didn't even smirk upon seeing Carlos's worried expression and he leaned towards the tub to inspect. "It's better," he said, before turning to leave.

"Wait! Are you making chocolate pie?"

Logan stopped, turned back around, and sighed. "What have we _learned _today, Carlos?"

Carlos's gaze fell to his toes. "Do not pee in the shower."

Logan looked at him. "Good. I'll make the damn pie."

* * *

><p>Note: So, I thought that was amusing. I hope you did, too. Who thought it was going to be wal-mart related? haha. Now I have to pee. But that's because I drink a lot of coffee. anyway, thanks for reading. (:<p> 


	7. Crying is Blackmail

Thought: I understand that if I don't update, it'll never get done.

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><p>no point of view.<p>

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><p>la regola sette<br>piangere è il ricatto

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><p>Kendall was thinking aimlessly about nothing. Literally. It was the only word in his head at that particular moment, and it was possibly the first time that had ever happened in his life. He felt like Carlos for a moment; who was usually thinking about nothing. In James's thought's usually consisted of narcissistic comments about how great he was looking that day. Logan's mind was far too complicated for Kendall to even being to decipher.<p>

Kendall, himself, usually thought about hockey, or family, an upcoming test, or an upcoming match. Sometimes he thought about girls, but he mostly just thought about Logan. But in that moment, he had nothing. Nothing was going on in his brain. No hockey match, not one family member, nor a thought about a test. He was blank, and empty, just sitting in his room, staring at Logan's bed. He wasn't even wondering where Logan was, or who he was with.

Just, blank.

His own mind couldn't keep him company, and he was starting to feel extremely lonely. He mindlessly stood up and went into the kitchen, looking around only seeing Carlos. Then, he went into the living room to only see James. "Where is everybody?"

"Well, Carlos is in the kitchen and Mama K is at the store, Katie's at her friend's and Logan is out."

"Out where?"

"Just…out."

"Logan doesn't go out. Please, just tell me where went."

"Why? Can't you ever just hang out with me for once? Or even Carlos? What's so bad about us?"

"You're not Logan."

"What's the -"

"You and Carlos have dads."

James bit his lip. He and the guys hadn't forgotten what today was, and they'd been kind of waiting for this moment. "We didn't forget, Kendall," James said.

"I didn't ask that. I just - where's Logan?"

"I can't tell you ,Kendall."

Kendall's eyes watered purposefully. Kendall knew very well what he was doing. "Why not?"

James took in a deep breath of air. "Crying is blackmail, Kendall. Come on, just trust me. He'll be back soon."

Kendall was not satisfied by this answer and plopped himself on the couch, sulking in his own grief, his heart full of never ending pain from the sorrow. He just wanted this day to end. He wanted this nightmare to be over. He wanted Logan to be here with him, fully understanding everything he was feeling because Kendall wasn't the only one who lost someone in the war.

In fact, Logan's father was killed first. Kendall had over heard his father on more than one occasion telling his mother that, "It could have been me instead. It should have been me instead." Nobody knew how hard he'd tried to save his buddy's life, you know? When he went back, his buddy tried just as hard to save his life, and went back home thinking the same thing.

James sat next to Kendall and rubbed his arm. Carlos walked in with a sandwich and some chocolate milk, "Awh, Kendall," he said, bread flying out of his mouth. "Here, have some chocolate milk."

"I don't want any friggin chocolate milk, Carlos, I want Logan!"

"Well, he's at his old house trying to find a picture to cheer you up," Carlos said clearly feeling genuinely bad for his friend.

James face palmed and Kendall jumped up. "He's not!" he shouted. "He's not stupid enough to actually go in there is he?"

"He says he knows -"

"James! How could you let him go! The friggin thing's halfway burned down! He could get hurt!"

James sighed, not wanting to be apart of this argument, but clearly Kendall thought this was his fault. "Kendall, buddy," he said, "You're the one who trusts Logan's word the most. He promised he'd be okay."

"He's a friggin klutz!"

"Who's a klutz?" came Logan's voice from behind them.

"You!" Kendall screamed, turning around and seeing Logan. He ran up and hugged him. "You're so stupid, Logan!"

Logan's cheeks turned red. "Kendall, I'm a genius," he said matter-of-factly. "And I found it."

Kendall's heart fell in his chest when he saw the picture Logan held. It was a picture of their fathers together the last day they were with each other. They were looking pretty clean, they were in their uniforms, big grins on their face. Kendall's father looked just like him; those eyes, that nose, the dimples. Logan's father was just the same, looking like his son.

The photo wasn't in the best shape, but it wasn't completely ruined. Kendall tried to swallow away the lump in his throat. "How'd you know it didn't burn in the fire?"

"I had a hunch," Logan said. Kendall was crying again, looking at the photo with his head down. Logan bent to get a better look. "Hey, you crying? What did you tell me, Kendall? It's just another day to remember him. It's the day to remember him. What's that rule? Crying is blackmail no matter what end you're on. So stop it, okay? Don't cry because he's gone, smile because you knew him. Right?"

Kendall took a deep breath and dabbed his calloused fingers against his tears, trying to subtly wipe them away. He looked at Logan and Logan was looking at him, a kind of 'please be happy' smile on his face, desperate to get the leader to stop crying. It was rare when Kendall got like this, but it was Kendall's original rule; crying is blackmail.

But he had a hard time applying it when the death anniversary of his father rolled around. Logan usually sucked it up well; Kendall knew it was because he was embarrassed of having feelings, but it was only human. Everybody has feelings.

Once Carlos finished his sandwich, he asked his friends a question they'd heard every time the word was used, "What's blackmail?"

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><p>Note: So, my Macedonian coworker proposed to me. I don't think he's legit, but I'm still pretty psyched. Thanks for reading. (:<p> 


	8. Always Use Your Brain

Thought: My Macedonian said he will miss me when he's goes back home. I almost cried because I never, ever, ever want to think about them going home.

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><p>carlos' point of view<p>

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><p>la regola otto<br>sempre usare il suo cervello

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><p>Always use your brain.<p>

I once got sick eating an entire thing of cookies. I wanted to stop eating them after two, but they were just _so_ good that I needed their taste in my mouth. I _really_ wanted to stop once my tummy started to hurt, but I just couldn't. Logan got really mad that I didn't listen to him.

I once got hurt playing hockey with the guys. I wanted to be as fast as Kendall, but no matter what I did, I couldn't keep up. He kept telling me, "Maybe one day, young Carlos." but I never could catch him. I never could catch any of them, actually, but I still tried and tried and tried. Kendall told me to break right. I accidentally went left and had a facedown with Logan. Logan got really mad that I didn't listen to him.

I once got into trouble trying to get a cow so my mom wouldn't have to pay for all the milk the baby used. James was my partner in crime, like usual. We were just trying to help, and there were _so many_ cows in the field. My mom was really, really, really mad, and Logan was too.

Logan got mad at me all the time, because I always did dumb things. I couldn't help it, though, it was just natural for me. My brother was a jokester, and I was just like him. I liked doing dumb things like playing basketball on the trampoline, or tying rockets to my bike. It was just a Carlos thing to do.

I stayed up late trying to do my homework but it wasn't working. I couldn't get it, I didn't even know where to begin. It was history, and I couldn't keep focus. Logan would say, "it's easy, just read the book and answer the questions." but it wasn't that easy for me. Words and I didn't get along, neither did me and focusing.

It was _really_ late for a school night, but if I knew Logan, he wouldn't be asleep. I sent him a text, **u up.**

I stared aimlessly at the blank 15 questions beneath my name and the date as I waited for Logan to reply, which he did with a, **of course. History or English?**

I sighed. **histry.**

…**be there in 5.**

This happened often. Logan and I were almost neighbors. Our backyards were almost conjoined, besides the barbed fence. Sometimes we'd walk around the block, or sometimes we'd hopped the fence. Either way, it took about five minutes.

Logan scratched his shoulder hopping the fence that night, he knew he should have just walked around. He let himself into my house, my dog not even barking as he did so. He crept up the stairs to my room and let himself in there as well.

"Hi," he said, his voice soft.

"Hey," I said, accidentally sounding stressed and frustrated.

"It'll be okay," he said. "We'll get through this."

"Do you have Scooby Snacks?"

"Don't I always?"

I smiled and he sat next to me, looking at the first question. "_Name all the states encompassed within the Louisiana Purchase_."

"What does that even mean?"

"It wants to know what states made up the Louisiana Purchase. Look at the map and always use your brain."

I looked at the map; the states and part of Canada were green, and the key said that the Louisiana Purchase states were in the green overlay. I wondered how I didn't figure that out myself. Was I really that dumb? I shook my head in disappointment at myself. Logan's eyes looked tired and I felt bad.

"How long was your dad's hooker there tonight?" I asked.

Logan hesitated. "…she's still there."

I shook my head. "You could have came over a lot sooner if you wanted. You're always welcome here."

Logan smiled, "I know. Ahem, question two…who was the president during the time of the Louisiana Purchase?"

I bit my lip and looked at the book but all the words instantly blurred and became black dots. I looked at Logan after a moment, his dry cheeks rosy and his voice tired too, "Always use your brain."

I looked back at the book. The headline of the chapter was _Thomas Jefferson and the Louisiana Purchase_. "Thomas Jefferson?"

Logan nodded.

"This would go a lot faster if you just told me the answers."

"What would you learn then?"

"That I should ask you to help me with my homework before it's eleven o'clock at night and I'm tired."

"You already knew that. If you had used your brain, like I tell you, you wouldn't be in this situation. I'm always right, Carlos, you know that. You just have to use your brain, and you'd remember. I don't know how many times I have to tell you before it'll click in your brain."

"My brain is constantly on defect mode, Logan. You know things don't stay in my brain like they stay in yours."

"But you know how to use it."

I had to agree; I knew how to use my brain and Logan _always _was right about these kinds of things. And, he was right, if I had used my brain, I wouldn't be in the situation I had gotten myself in, being extremely tired and having thirteen questions to go. Logan, though, he stayed up with me till one in the morning to finish that damn paper. Question seven was a doozy and went up to part J.

And let me tell you, Logan used that phrase 'Always use your brain' so many times that I think it actually stuck in my brain. I might actually use my brain more and listen to Logan, because he's always right.

The following day, I woke up in the morning and took a shower. Then, I thought it'd be a good idea to tie my skateboard to my mom's car and hitch a ride from the back. She'd never even know.

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><p>Note: I started this yesterday. I just didn't know how I wanted to end it. but, i dunno. yeah. thanks for reading (:<p> 


	9. Don't Call Names

Thought: So, I don't know what my deal is, but lately, I've been having this major Jarlos itch. Juicy has turned into Jarlos so bad that I don't even know what to do with it right now. Nothing comes. I'm just stuck with it right now. I'll figure something out. I've already got two stories on hold, trust me, I'm refusing to put another one on hiatus. So. Here's

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><p>james' pov<p>

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><p>le regola nove<br>non chiamare dei nomi

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><p>We have a lot in common, my friends and I. It's because we've known each other for so long. Pre-k, you know? When Carlos still wore diapers to bed, and our mommies had to buckle us up into carseats in the 'way back' of the minivan because that was the cool thing.<p>

My car seat had a mirror attached to it, just saying. Even as a baby, I was brilliantly good looking.

We met playing hockey; that rumor is true. Hockey was something my uncle did and something he wanted me to do. It'd toughen me up, he said. Which, this was true. I really had no balls till I joined hockey, I mena, I _was_ only four.

Kendall was undoubtedly the best player, even then. He could actually _skate_, whereas the rest of us were still wobbling messes. We practiced an hour on the ice, and then an our playing _floor_ hockey for about two years. It was ridiculous. Kendall loved hockey, it was his thing.

Carlos was usually in the goal; he had this helmet that he was rather attached to, and it sometimes distracted him so the coach figured it'd be best to put him in there, so he had time to be sidetracked while his team had the puck. Carlos's brother played hockey, and the kid had a thing to be like him. I wasn't really sure why, but I didn't really have anyone to look up to. I was good enough for myself, of course, but I mean, come on, I'm friggin excellent. He was good, in the goal net, Carlos. He had cat-like reflexes, so no matter where the puck went, he was pretty good at blocking it.

Logan picked up the game the quickest; he understood it, it made sense. I'm have no idea what caused him to initially join, but I'll tell you, I'm glad he did. He's a genius, you know? He also learned to skate quicker than any of us. The downfall was that he had been apprehensive to try it, and didn't get on the ice till about two months after everyone else.

Another person we've all known since pre-k is Jenny Tinkler. That bitch is accident prone to the max. It's not like Logan where mere clumsiness overpowers gravity. It's not like Carlos where anything and everything is a natural playground. It's borderline psycho accident prone, Jenny Tinkler. She was just dumb and bad things followed her wherever she went.

I usually like girls, and you know, I liked Jenny Tinkler for a long time, not like, _like_ like, but I liked her, you know? I liked her even after she caused Carlos to fall down into the well those first three times, and I liked her after she scared Logan so bad that he fell off the monkey bars. I liked her even after she jumped off the swings and landed on Kendall, giving him his first concussion ever. The rest of us were lucky enough to get concussions from hockey.

Jenny Tinkler was riding the line when she broke my arm playing marbles, but it was the paper cut that _really_ got me.

There we were, in second grade art. Logan was in the corner safely making some fantastic, geniotic sculpture. Kendall and Carlos were at the table with Jenny Tinkler and I, and we were working on painting.

Jenny Tinkler, the idiot, spilled red pain on Kendall that day, and he was over at the sink for ten minutes trying to get the stain out. She accidentally pulled Carlos's chair out from underneath him before he sat back down, and he was crying because his butt and elbows hurt.

Jenny Tinkler, the moron, was flapping her painting all around, trying to explain her apology for Carlos, who was still crying.

"Suck it up, Carlos," I told him. "Your butt will stop hurting soon."

"My elbows hurt, too!"

"That, my friend, is because you don't know how to land."

"I didn't know I was falling!"

And before I knew it, a thick, large painting painted by none other than the giant baboon herself, Jenny Tinkler, came hurling at my face. I threw my arms up to protect myself, and that's where I got sliced. It didn't hurt so much at first, because I wasn't thinking about it.

When the creature opened her mouth shouting useless apologies is when I decided to look. "! OUCH!" I hollered, and now, the teacher who had been occupied with Carlos turned her attention to me. "Ms. Webster! Jenny Tinkler cut me open!" I hollered.

Kendall stopped what he was doing and went over to the scene, as did Logan and some of the other nosy ass students. I was panicking, blood was pouring down my arm and Jenny Tinkler had her stupid eyebrows arched, looking stupid, with her stupid forehead all wrinkled. I was so mad, I wanted to punch her. I wished for years she wasn't a girl. I found myself wondering on more than one occasion _why _the hell so many people in this damn world are _so stupid_! I just didn't get it. I did learn that you meet more and more stupid people as you grow up, and especially when you have a job, but I'd never, ever find anyone as stupid as Jenny Tinkler.

Oh my god, what a dumbass. What would possess a person to fling around paper, anyway?

"Ms. Webster," Kendall said, in his scratchy, young seven year old voice. "I think James needs stitches."

I didn't even know he'd been inspecting my wound, because I was so friggin focused on the pain. It hurt _so bad_. Logan was right next to him, his little pointer finger on his chin and eyes narrowed and stuck on my arm.

"Ms. Webster," he said in his soft, squeaky seven year old voice, "That's right on James's right ulnar artery."

"Oh my god!" I hollered, "A ulnurr ardery! See what you did, Jenny!"

That day, I got to ride in an ambulance, but I didn't even remember because I passed out. When I woke up, I had a few smiling facing peering down on me.

Logan's eyes, I noticed, were lit up. "James!" he said, "You made history, dude! That's so awesome. You're the first person ever in the history of the living to need surgery from a paper cut!"

"Why are you so excited about that?"

"Because! It's so cool! Think of it, you're the only one! Like, nobody else. It's your thing."

I wasn't seeing his side. "Logan, shut up you tard. This isn't funny, this isn't cool. Jenny Tinkler is a stupid, no good, worth nothing jerk."

"Yeah, but, it's not nice to call names," Carlos said.

My eyebrows scrunched together in my anger and frustration. "But-"

"James," Kendall said, "Carlos is right. Don't call names."

I rolled my eyes, but, the boss had spoken. "Sorry," I grumbled. "But I'm not happy here."

"Well, when you get out of this place we'll all go get pizza and ice-cream. Sound good?"

I smiled. It did sound good.

So, like I said, I knew these guys since pre-k, and I'd known Jenny Tinkler since pre-k. The only difference between the guys and Jenny Tinkler, was that I actually _liked _the guys.

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><p>Note: This was for <strong>DallieJLovesBTR<strong> . This wasn't SO jarlos-y, and the ending was really bad, but I had a fun time writing this.I hope you enjoyed reading it, which, by the way, I thank you for. thanks for reading. (:


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